Usually the character is rude, blunt, harsh, strong, and the men around her are made to seem childish or not as sophisticated in some way or kind of incompetent. I think that a much better use of women in media is showcasing all different kinds, of course, so those people can exist, but also going ahead and allowing space for women who are very delicate or very fragile, who then want to go ahead and have their strengths and be in positions of power, because you can have both
Deborah Pardes
@DBPardes · 2:20
Hey, Emily, I was looking at that pink picture and I was like, oh, my gosh. It just brought up Barbie for me, and I'm sure for many other people because that movie, of course, had a lot of exploration around the feminine and masculine. But specific to what you're saying, I think it's really interesting given the climate we're in right now
I would almost say that that's not a feminist presentation, but instead the patriarchy, the language of the patriarchy that describes her that way, instead of assertive, powerful, transparent, honest to the point, because that's language you would hear spoken about men. But usually the rude, brash, blunt, et cetera, is spoken about women. So I don't know. I think there's a lot of complexities to this question. It's a great one to think
Swell Team
@Swell · 0:15
Tanya Coles
@MsColes77 · 3:41
She seems to be the one that gets the most fan support, whereas Meredith didn't get as much fan support because she know the more traditional role of being the wife, the mother, focusing on family while her husband advances his career, et cetera. So, yeah, I do believe that the feminist characters are the ones that gain the most support and the ones that are regarded more highly, the ones that are more respected. And I agree with you
Wren .
@aBirdieOnaWire · 4:41
I agree wholeheartedly with Christina that the idea that feminism is a know a counterbalance to the patriarchy, where people are using it as a mechanism to try and balance the scales against patriarchy. And I wonder how much of the patriarchy has defined in my mind what femininity is. And it is a little unsettling, to be quite honest. But I am very girly. I would almost dare say hyperfemme, but there's a couple of reasons. One of them is for safety purposes
Wren .
@aBirdieOnaWire · 5:00
And I agree, again with Christina that that's language that we use for men that we wouldn't use for women, and that needs to stop. But those are two examples where I think that the media is portraying women in a well rounded way to show these sort of tough characteristics as well as soft and probable side
Angela Kaye
@AnngieKaye · 3:56
However, like you said, the portrayal of a true feminist, it's not that. And why are you wearing a bra? And how do you wear a dress every day? No, because I thought the point of the movement was for every woman to be who she wanted to be. And yet, if we're bucking up against what was once the tradition, well, you're not letting a person be who she really wants to be
Emily Stewart
@dourbat · 3:40
I suppose something that I thought was really interesting is at the end you brought up the difference between usually, like, masculine and feminine communication, at least in terms of how people talk about women and how we interact with women. And I wanted to clarify because I 1000% agree with that. I think that is an amazing point because I wasn't very specific in what I was trying to convey. I do agree. Yeah. The points that a strong woman would then become bossy. Right
Emily Stewart
@dourbat · 4:03
And I think nothing is more cool when there's a woman who is very feminine and presents very femininely, I suppose, but then she's just very smart and very witty and just knows what she's talking about, knows how to get in the field and isn't argumentative per se, but she just knows what she's talking about. I love that. That's my favorite
Emily Stewart
@dourbat · 4:02
But then as I got older, I started accepting different ideals, I suppose, of femininity and kind of allowing myself to feel more at peace with my womanhood and myself in those ways. And I think it's so interesting how, as young people, because we are taught by the patriarchy, I suppose, that womanhood is bad, or femininity is something that we need to reject. So many girls need to separate themselves from it
And so this is supposed to mean that the company is going to turn around, but essentially they know there's no turning it around. And so they put the woman in, and she ends up taking the fall for everything that was done up to that point. And so then people will say, well, see, you can't have women as ceos. But I was going to say chicken and egg. It's not that the woman has caused this thing
Wren .
@aBirdieOnaWire · 4:41
But something you'd said about how the patriarchy has taught us from when we were very little, and that's little boys and little girls as well, that femininity is bad. To be feminine, to be a little girl is bad. I tell you what. You want to know the worst thing that you can tell a little boy is that he's acting like a girl. Yeah. You want to give the biggest insult possible, I'm reminded. Okay, in the sand lot
Emily Stewart
@dourbat · 1:17
And I think that there is a turn where people are starting to really soften their clear image of what it means and what it's supposed to look like to be a feminist. I think that's really interesting to kind of see our culture shift away, and that just ties into so many different elements as well. But, yeah, I just really love your thought. So thank you so much for sharing your thoughts
Belle 🍕
@ReySkywalker · 2:48
I love that movie. And actually, I think that movie does it really well because Elizabeth, she's a proper english woman, but she also has this yearning for freedom and piracy. And I think her character is really well done because she has attributes of both femininity. She wears a dress, but then she'll also go on these grand pirate adventures and she has a love interest. Will, I thought those movies were great. So, yeah, actually, I think there can be a balance
Emily Stewart
@dourbat · 4:02
Oh, my gosh. I love that you brought Pirates of the Caribbean into this, because I also, that is one of my favorite movies. I absolutely agree with Elizabeth and that character and how she was displayed. I think obviously, you can apply some male gaze attributes or putting her in areas where it does come across as sexist. And yes, I feel like we will never escape that
Michelle Murad
@MichelleMurad · 3:44
And you can still look feminine and you can still be girly and you can still dress and all the things. So hopefully. I feel like media is changing. Interestingly enough, I feel like there's, I guess, like an ego death in media. This is a long, swell meaning the way things used to be are no longer working. And for good reason, because it was so toxic
Emily Stewart
@dourbat · 1:57
Thank you so much for your response, Michelle. I think the example of legally blonde is absolutely a great example. Just phenomenal. Pretty much exactly what I'm trying to kind of talk about, I guess, and how obviously, there are still many things wrong in that movie. As with literally every single movie, I don't think you can get by without having the male gaze in film for the most. Most part